April 30

Chlordane is banned, and the Arctic village of Shishmaref is relocated.

April 30, 1988: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency issues a total ban on the sale of chlordane, a cancer-causing pesticide that had been used for decades on crops, lawns, and gardens. Banned for those uses in 1983, EPA places it off limits as an anti-termite chemical as well.

April 30, 2009: Battered by waves and steady erosion, the Alaskan Arctic village of Shishmaref completes its relocation to safer ground. Located on gravel spit on the northwestern Alaska coast, Shishmaref had been protected from winter storms by a thick layer of shore ice. But the ice has declined dramatically in recent years, with winter storms taking direct aim at the streets and buildings of the town. At right, a Shishmaref Inuit stands on a snowy outcropping.

April 30, 2010: In response to the growing Deepwater Horizon spill in the Gulf of Mexico, President Obama orders a halt to any new offshore drilling without improved safeguards.

April 30, 2012: Al Almendariz, EPA’s Dallas Regional Administrator for, resigns in the wake of a firestorm over comments he made two years earlier. Praised by environmentalists and targeted by the oil and gas industry, Almendariz had likened EPA’s enforcement policy to a Roman crucifixion. But the former college professor came under assault, and ultimately got nailed.

The opinions expressed by MNN Bloggers and those providing comments are theirs alone, and do not reflect the opinions of MNN.com. While we have reviewed their content to make sure it complies with our Terms and Conditions, MNN is not responsible for the accuracy of any of their information.